Sunday, November 27, 2005

Today a friend and I made a visit to the Quabbin Reservoir. The original goal was to do some kayaking and possibly spot some bald eagles. The reservoir is a known area for spotting bald eagles, so it seemed like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, after a 2 hour drive to get there we discovered that due to some very strange policy, they don't allow canoes or kayaks on the reservoir. Now I could understand this policy if all boats were forbidden, since it is a reservior for drinking water, but that isn't the case. They allow gasoline power boats for fishing - they just don't allow environmentally friendly boats such as canoes, kayaks, or even sailboats. Quite odd.

Anyhow, regardless of that bit of disappointment, we still had a good time. The reservoir area is a beautiful place.Since we couldn't go kayaking, we decided to instead do some hiking in hopes for seeing some eagles. We never did see any eagles, but we did manage to come upon a pair of white-tailed deer on a trail. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of not having my camera out and ready (it was in my backpack) so I didn't get to take a picture before the deer ran away. That's one lesson I have now learned. Whenever I go hiking, I should have my camera ready. After the deer ran away, we spent a while stalking them through the somewhat snowy woods, trying to get a chance for a decent photo. After about a half hour of circling through the woods trying to flush the deer back towards my friend who was waiting with his camera, this photo was the best I could manage.

They don't allow kayaks on the reservior because it is a pain in the neck pulling the bodies out of the water delivery systems in the two dams. The Quabbin can kick up like the ocean or a great lake with certain weather conditions - and it can happen in a matter of minutes. Canoes, kayaks and john boats are not allowed for that reason. The Quabbin is over 100 feet deep on the west side and is a 6 mile long underwater canyon. That is a lot of water to dray with grappling hooks.

There are more $80,000 a year door holders (er..court officers)on Beacon Hill than there are resources to patrol the largest body of water in the commonwealth so don't expect any changes anytime soon either.